Fire-alarm apparatus.



. 1 PATENTED APR. 2, 1907. W. s. CLAY & A. T. M cKENNEY.

S U T A R A P P A M R A L A E R I P 2 SHEETS-SHEET APPLICATION FILED FEB.19, 1904.

QAHM S No. 848,725. q PATENTED APR. 2.1907. W. S. G'LAY & A. T. MGKENNEY.

FIRE ALARM APPARATUS.

APPLIOATION FILED FEB. 19, 1904.

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ZEOILS. C v I A? 4o 1 1 the improved device.

nNrrnn STATES PATENT onnron.

WELLINGTON S. CLAY AND ALBION T. MOKENNEY, OF HUTCHINSON, MINNESOTA.

FIRE-ALARM APPARATUS.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented April 2, 1907.

Application filed February 19, 1904. Serial No. 194,409.

To all whom 132'; may concern:

Be it known that we, WELLINGTON S. CLAY and ALBION T. MCKENNEY, citizens of the United States, residing at Hutchinson, in the county of McLeod and State of Minnesota, have invented a new and useful Fire- Alarm Apparatus, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to devices for sounding alarms of fire and for similar purposes, and has for its object to simplify and improve the construction and produce a device of this character, preferably for association with an ordinary telephone or similar system, whereby an alarm of fire may be sounded on a gong or bell located at any convenient or prominent point.

With these and other objects in view, which will appear as the nature of the invention is better understood, the same consists in certain novel features of construction, as hereinafter fully described and claimed.

In the accompanying drawings, forming a part of this specification, and in which corre sponding parts are denoted by like designating characters, is illustrated the preferred form of the embodiment of the invention capable of carrying the same into practical operation, it being understood that the invention is not necessarily limited thereto, as various changes in the shape, proportions, and general assemblage of the parts may be resorted to without departing from the prin-, ciple of the invention or sacrificing any of its advantages, and the right is therefore reserved of making all the changes and modifications which fairly fall within the scope of the'invention and the claims made therefor.

In the drawings, Figure 1 is a sectional side elevation, and Fig. 2 is a plan view, of Fig. 3 is a sectional detail illustrating the construction and arrangement of the springs and spring-shaft connections. Fig. 4 is a sectional detail of one end of the governor mechanism, and Fig. 5 is a similar view of the opposite end. Fig. 6 is a detail of the armature-lever hanger. The improved apparatus may be located contiguous to any form-of bell or gong, either employed for the special purpose of sounding fire-alarms or associated with bells or gongs employed for other purposessuch as church-bells, city or county hall bells, court-house bells, or the bells or gongs of town-clocks or the likeand consists of a supporting-frame generally comprising spaced side members 10 11 and transverse stay members 12 and may be of any desired shape or size.

Mounted for rotation between the side members 10 11 are two shafts 13 14, one carrying a lever-arm 15, terminating in a hammer 16 for striking a gong or bell, (indicated at 17,) and the other shaft carrying a toothed wheel 18, engaging the shorter end 19 of the lever and actuating the same when rotated and causing the hammer to intermittently strike the bell or gong, as hereafter described.

The shaft 13, carrying the hammer-lever 15, is provided with a spring 20, connected at one end, 21 to the frame member 10 and by the other end 22 to the lever 15, and exerting its force when the end 19 of the lever is released from the teeth of the wheel 18 to cause the hammer member 16 to strike the gong with accelerated force.

To improve the action, a section of spring plate or bar 23 is connected between the free end of the lever and hammer 16, the lever 15 and its attached spring and hammer being so disposed relatively that when at rest the hammer will not touch the gong or bell and then when released by the points of the teeth of the wheel 18 passing from the end 19 the resiliency of the spring-arm 23 will carry the hammer onward into contact with the bell and immediately rebound therefrom, and thus produce a sharp quick blow 'upon the bell and not remain in contact therewith to muffle or deaden the sound.

Transversely disposed through the frame members 10 11 is a spring-shaft formed in two sections 24 25, the section 24 held stationary in the frame member, as by clampnut 26 and shoulder 27 on the shaft-section, and the section mounted for rotation in the frame member 11 and having a stud 28 rotatively engaging a socket in the adjacent end of the shaft-section 24.

Surrounding the shaft-sections 24 25 is a casing 29, having a central division plate or diaphragm 30 and each section of the casing thus formed provided with an independent spring-section 31 32, oppositely coiled and.

connected, respectively, to the shaft-sections 24 25, as at 33 34, by their inner ends and connected by their outer ends to the casing 29, as at 35 36.

A ratchet-wheel 37 is connected to rotate with the shaft-section 25, and a gear-wheel 38 is mounted loosely upon the same shaftsection and meshing with a pinion 39 on the shaft 14.

A pawl 40 is pivoted at 41 to the gear 38 and engages the ratchet 37. the gravity order and is formed doubleended, one end being hook-shaped, and is pivoted at one side of the center so that it will drop into engagement with the ratchet no matter in what position the gear 38 may be placed.

An operating-handle 42 is detachably connected to the shaft-section 25, and by this arrangement of parts it will be obvious that if the gear 38 be held stationary and the handle 42 rotated the spring-section 32 will be rotated and carry the casing 29 with it, thus picking up the reversely-coiled spring-section 31 and winding both spring-sections upon their respective shaft-sections and disposing them in position to react against the gear 38 and pinion 39 and rotate the shaft 14 when the gear 38 is released, so long as any force remains in the springs.

A combined friction-brake and governor mechanism is connected to the apparatus to control the movement of the gear 38 and is constructed as follows: A transverse shaft 43 is rigidly connected between the members 10 11, as by clamp-nuts 44 45, and mounted for rotation on the shaft near the plate 10 is a controlling-disk 46, having on one side a collar 47 and on the other side a ge. r-pinion 48. The three members 46, 47, and 48 are rigidly connected and held from longitudinal movement on the shaft, as by shoulder 49, but rotate on the shaft. Near its opposite end the shaft 43 is provided with a collar 50 slidable thereon and adapted for adjustment to any desired point by set-screw 51 and having a flexible friction-surface 52, of rubber or other suitable material. Mounted for rotation on the shaft 43 and bearing against the frictionsurface 52 is a collar 53, corresponding to the collar 47 and connected thereto by strips 54 of resilient material, such as spring-steel. Attached centrally to the bars 54 are weighted balls 55, of heavy material, such as lead. By this simple means it will be obvious that any increase of motion imparted to the pinion 48, connected disk 46, connected collars 47 53, and spring-bars 54 will cause the weighted balls 55 to move outwardly by the centrifugal force and draw the collar 53 forcibly against the yieldable stationary surface 52, and thus check the motion.

The pinion 48 and gear 38 are connected by a train of gears 56 57 and pinions 58 59 upon counter-shafts 60 61, so that the power required to hold the disk 46 and its connections stationary Will be comparatively slight.

Pivoted to the frame member 10 is a crutchbrace 63, having a pivot-pin 62, upon which is The pawl is of 1 pivoted a lever-arm 64, having at one end a l brake-shoe 74, preferably of rubber or similar suitable material, engaging the disk 46, and at the other end terminating in an armature above the core 66 of an electromagnet 67, mounted upon the frame 10. The lever-arm 64 is provided with a tension-spring 68, preferably with an adjusting-screw 69, to hold the brake-lever with its shoe 65 normally in engagement with the disk 46. The spring 68 will have sufficient force to hold the disk 46 stationary against the comparatively slight that so long as the electromagnet remains deenergized the apparatus will remain inactive.

As before stated the apparatus will preferably be associated with a telephone or similar system, as by conductor-wires 7O 71, but as the necessary switches and connecting devices are so well known they are not illustrated.

The switch will be located convenient to the hand of the operator in a central exchange, and when a notice of fire is communicated over the telephone system the operator simply closes the switch, when the resultant energizing of the electromagnet 67 will instantly release the brake-lever 64 by attracting the armature 65 and permitting the reactionary force of the springs 31 32 to rotate the notched wheel 37 and actuate the hammer-lever so long as the switch remains closed or until the springs are exhausted.

While the device is shown connected for operation by an open-circuit system, a closed circuit may be employed by simply reversing the relative positions of the spring 68 and electromagnet 67; but this would be no departure from the principle of the invention, as the same results would be accomplished.

Having thus described the invention, what is claimed is 1. A device of the classdescribed comprising a hammer mounted for vibration, means for vibrating said hammer, an automatic governing device for said means consisting of a fixed shaft having a shoulder, a disk mounted for rotation on said shaft and restrained from lateral movement by said shoulder, a ro tating means attached to said disk, a second disk mounted upon the shaft and being capable of lateral and rotary movement thereon, spring-bars having intermediate weights attached at their ends to said disks, a collar fixed to the shaft and an elastic washer interposed between said collar and the second said disk.

2. A device of the character described comprising a hammer mounted for vibration, means for vibrating said hammer, a device for automatically controlling said vibrating means consisting of a fixed-shaft having a shoulder, a disk mounted for rotation on said shaft and being restrained from lateral movement by said shoulder, a rotating means attached to said disk, a second disk mounted force exerted thereon by the springs 31 32, so

upon the shaft and being capable of lateral In testimony that we claim the foregoing and rotary movement thereon, a collar 10-- as our own we have hereto afiixed our signa- T0 cated upon the shaft and being capable of lattures in the presence of two witnesses.

eral adjustment thereon, an elastic Washer in- WELLINGTON S. CLAY. terposed between said collar and the second ALBION T. MOKENNEY. said disk, spring-arms attached at their ends Witnesses:

to said disks, and Weights mounted upon in- STELLA L. JENSEN,

termediate portions of said arms. H. I. CLAY. 

